Nico Medina’s world is
eleven miles away from mine. During the day, it’s a place where doors are
open—where homes are lived in, and neighbors love. But when the sun sets, it
becomes a place where young boys are afraid, where eyes watch from idling cars
that hide in the shadows and wicked smoke flows from pipes.

West End is the kind of
place that people survive. It buries them—one at a time, one way or another.
And when Nico was a little boy, his mom always told him to run.

My world is the ugly one.
Private school politics and one of the best high school football programs in
the country can break even the toughest souls. Our darkness plays out in
whispers and rumors, and money and status trump all. I would know—I’ve watched
it kill my family slowly, strangling us for years.

In our twisted world, a
boy from West End is the only shining light.

Quarterback.

Hero.

Heart.

Good.

I hated him before I
needed him.

I fell for him fast.

I loved him when it was
almost too late.

When two ugly worlds
collide, even the strongest fall. But my world…it hasn’t met the boy from West
End.

5+ Stars**The Hard Count generously provided in exchange for an honest review.**Ginger Scott continually awes me with her uniquely gifted YA voice. Her penchant for story telling steals your reading breath from beginning to end in The Hard Count. She quite eloquently captures the very essence of growing up. Her main characters learn and build upon their own ideas of what's right and wrong deciding for themselves where the gray areas lie and where there shouldn't be any at all. Scott takes preconceived stereotypes that still very much exist despite how the good in some of us reject those very ideas, then turns them inside out proving why social injustices are not to be tolerated. She takes these ideas and puts them in the minds eye of today's youth showcasing the power young adults have to change such ideas. And she does all that with a sport, football, playing a pivotal role in the story.

As a caveat - a personal aside - to this review for this book. I believe sports are a vital part of our young adult lives, our high school culture. I believe in the good that comes from having a coach that cares and pushes because of that care. I know there's bad but overall I believe in the immense good. I've been the daughter of a high school coach my entire life. I'm now the sister of a college coach. I'm married to an athlete. I know first hand it takes something special to possess the quality to lead others in a sports arena. Whether or not you believe in the power of a team or care about sports at all, I feel it so important to recognize Ginger Scott's beliefs in sports and teams. I identified with her heroine, the daughter of a coach, so much it's almost uncanny. I've run those gambits of emotion in my own high school years. I've seen my father run ragged by talk of parents and board members. I've also seen the great joy he gets with each success. It's a crazy life yet it's also very fulfilling so I needed to take an extra paragraph and commend this author for capturing that so brilliantly.

Now for the good stuff: Nico Medina and Reagan Prescott are a modern idea of two star-crossed lovers. Set in a private high school setting, Nico is the boy from the other side of the tracks people think they need to fear while Reagan is the football coaches daughter embodying wholesome exterior. What a twisted world they're entwined in based on preconceived notions and fear of the unknown. From socialite politics to barrio violence, Ginger Scott brilliantly tells this tale of two people destined for greatness and each other no matter how winding the path to that greatness may be. Each of these characters holds their own when it comes to intelligence, wit, looks, and charisma. Nico and Reagan despite their vastly different home lives share a similar moral and ethical compass. They're each abundantly good people and it makes them literally shine from the pages of their love story.

A special section just for this hero, Nico Medina. This boy is the ultimate. He's exactly what you want in a YA hero, in any kind of hero actually. He's brave, bold, and beautiful. He's vulnerable in all the best ways yet such a fierce protector. He believes in what's just and good and makes no mistake about his beliefs. He's pure in a way that makes you wonder how he went unscathed for so long. He exudes confidence with an attitude that will set you on fire. He argues with such conviction you wish you could debate him yourself. Nico Medina is a very special character - my favorite of Scott's to date.

There are so many awesome secondary characters that make this mature YA story that much better as well. From Reagan's parents to Nico's family and especially one surly brother who's the catalyst for Nico's rise (hopefully to be coupled with one quirky best friend in a future story). Nothing is as it should be in this book. Scott so cleverly twists it all up to show you it doesn't matter your color, your social standing, your bank account, your ego. The story isn't singularly focused on Nico and Reagan but rather the attention divided on this group as a whole snarled in this web of good versus bad while Nico and Reagan drive it forward. The plot flows seamlessly and the structure really emphasizes Scott's ability to be distinct and effortless in her story telling.

The Hard Count will absolutely make you fall in love. The writing is impeccable - Ginger Scott's best yet, in my humble opinion. The story is unforgettable causing to you think and expand your minds and hearts into the social realm of both Nico and Reagan putting right in the middle of their story. It takes such important societal issues and juxtaposes the evil against the good in brilliant ways. It's a breathtakingly lovely romance. I was sad at the end because I could have read these two characters for much longer. I sincerely hope Scott revisits some of the secondary characters with more stories just like this. A must read recommendation from me to all the YA sports-loving romance readers.

About Ginger Scott

Ginger Scott is an
Amazon-bestselling and Goodreads Choice Award-nominated author of several young
and new adult romances, including Waiting on the Sidelines, Going Long,
Blindness, How We Deal With Gravity, This Is Falling, You and Everything After,
The Girl I Was Before, Wild Reckless, Wicked Restless and In Your Dreams.

A sucker for a good
romance, Ginger’s other passion is sports, and she

often blends the two in
her stories. (She’s also a sucker for a hot quarterback, catcher, pitcher,
point guard…the list goes on.) Ginger has been writing and editing for
newspapers, magazines and blogs for more than 15 years. She has told the
stories of Olympians, politicians, actors, scientists, cowboys, criminals and
towns. For more on her and her work, visit her website at http://www.littlemisswrite.com.

When she's not writing,
the odds are high that she's somewhere near a baseball diamond, either watching
her son field pop flies like Bryce Harper or cheering on her favorite baseball
team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ginger lives in Arizona and is married to her
college sweetheart whom she met at ASU (fork 'em, Devils).

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In accordance with FTC Guidelines, She Reads New Adult Book Blog is in no way compensated for any reviews or special posts you see on our site. The reviews posted on this site are for books purchased by us, but we do receive books through NetGalley, Edelweiss, or directly from authors or publishers in exchange for an honest review. The reviews we post are our true feelings for the books we read.